Emerald Fennell’s supposedly controversial adaptation of Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Heights finally arrived for the Valentine's Day crowd, slurping down $82 million (£60 million) at the global box office. But audiences hoping for the promised kinky take on the ultimate Gothic romance were sorely disappointed. Fans of the original book continue, of course, to be livid.
While the film is a fun romp through fantastical sets with a banging soundtrack (courtesy of Charli XCX) and lots of windy wuthering, it’s more of a Bridgerton-esque bodice-ripper than BDSM fest. Fennell’s Gothic-lite dispenses with all the most important bits, leaving the audience with a toxic situationship in corsets.
